The present invention relates in general to computer controlled outbound calling systems, and in particular to a system in which a group of agents can be kept busy with a minimum waiting period for any answered call.
The present invention may be utilized in an environment such as Rockwell International's Galaxy Automatic Call Distribution (ACD) system.
Three equipment groups comprise the Galaxy ACD: the digital switching network, the voice switch interface hardware and the agent and supervisor equipment.
The all solid-state computer-controlled digital switch is the hub of the operating system. Analog voice paths are converted to digital signals and cross-connected under computer control according to assignment and priorities. Encompassing the digital switch is the digital-to-analog and analog-to-digital channel bank equipment, which changes the analog telephone signals to digital form for connection through the switch. Connected peripherally to this hub are the telephone trunks, the agent positions and other equipment.
Because the system operates under programmed computer control, many operating options can be exercised by changes in program parameters. Definition of primary and alternate gates and the assignment of trunks and agent positions to a gate are made by table entries which can be altered as rapidly as operating conditions dictate.
Incoming calls on trunks assigned to a particular gate are routed in the exact order of arrival to associated agent positions. If all agents in that primary gate are busy, calls may be handled by an agent with a secondary assignment for that gate. A recorded voice announcement (which the calling party does not hear) identifies the origin of a call to the agent serving the call.
Incoming calls that cannot be handled immediately because all agents are busy can be given an optional delay announcement and placed in the incoming call queue, to be served as soon as an agent is free. The queued calls are then distributed sequentially on a first-come-first serve basis. During nonpeak calling periods, an agent completing a call is placed at the bottom of the call assignment queue to ensure equitable work distribution among agents. During peak periods when calls are waiting, the oldest call is routed to the first available agent.
The agent set is a compact, easy-to-use unit designed to speed the handling of incoming calls and to provide rapid access to supervisory assistance when required. All sets utilize membrane switch technology, greatly reducing maintenance because the keys have no moving parts.
The master and group supervisor position equipment employs a control set similar to the agent set and a CRT display unit as well as a headset/handset. The supervisor set includes all the functions of the agent set plus two outgoing line selectors, barge-in and monitor functions. The master supervisor set also contains control keys to play back delay announcements and to record new announcements on the system delay recorders.
Group supervisors monitor the operating status of agents assigned to the group and provide assistance to the agents as requested. Such requests are displayed on the CRT.
The master supervisor can monitor general system performance, as well as selectively monitor individual agent groups as desired, and can request and receive hard copy reports at any time. The master supervisor also has the capability to change agent and trunk assignments by keyboard entry on the CRT.
Rockwell has, in addition to the Galaxy ACD which functions as described in the previous paragraphs, an adjunct system to the Galaxy ACD called the Galaxy Contact System for Marketing.
The Tandem Non Stop computer is the heart of the Contact System which is the Galaxy Database Applications System for inbound/outbound call management. Like the Galaxy, the Tandem Non Stop architecture assures continuous operation of application programs.
The basic Tandem Non Stop system contains two Call Processor Units (CPU's). Expansion of the system is achieved by adding CPU's, cabinets, disk units and peripheral hardware to serve additional CRT's as required. This modular growth is accomplished within slots in the cabinets until they are full. When this occurs, another cabinet is added. Four CPU's can be placed in one cabinet, and there can be a total of four CPU cabinets in a system.
Just as in the Galaxy ACD, all critical Tandem Non Stop components are replicated, particularly the processors, memory and busses, with all processors doing useful, independent work. A small portion of each processor's capacity is used to maintain a backup of the other processor's activity. In the event one processor fails, the other processor immediately takes over to continue operations.
In addition to providing extremely fast response times to the data, each disk drive on the Tandem Non Stop can be individually replaced while the unit is online and operating. Each disk unit has dual disk controllers so that additional redundancy is again provided at this level of service.
The CRT's used in this system are Tandem's model 6526. The terminal has a 14-inch, non-glare, green phosphor screen. The CRT's are connected to the system with controller hardware that assures redundancy throughout, to achieve high reliability.